Premiership: Exeter Chiefs 42-5 Worcester Warriors - Sam Simmonds scores twice on return

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Sam Simmonds marked his return to Premiership action following the British and Irish Lions tour with two tries as Exeter thrashed Worcester.

Dave Ewers scored first for Exeter after a scrappy opening before Simmonds went over from close range.

Facundo Cordero scored in injury time and again moments after the restart to earn Exeter a bonus point.

Simmonds grabbed his second try and brother Joe Simmonds added a sixth before Justin Clegg's late consolation.

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After winning for the first time this season at Sale last weekend, a second successive victory lifts Exeter up to fifth in the table.

Worcester, meanwhile, have now lost three of their four games and have slipped back into the bottom half.

Both sides welcomed back a number of their Lions players for this game, with Luke Cowan-Dickie and Jonny Hill joining Sam Simmonds in the Chiefs' starting XV, while Worcester gave debuts to Scotland duo Duhan van der Merwe and Rory Sutherland.

But such stellar names on the team sheets was not matched by the quality on the field in an opening 20 minutes dominated by a succession of scrums.

Exeter, wearing a special one-off blue kit in tribute to the NHS, finally made the breakthrough when Ewers powered over from the base after Worcester held up a maul following a 5m line out.

Sam Simmonds, who broke the Premiership single-season try-scoring record last term, then got his season up and running before Cordero capitalised on captain Henry Slade opting not to kick the ball dead when his side were awarded a penalty in stoppage time by weaving his way through the Worcester defence and forcing his way over.

Cordero crossed again early in the second half to cap a fine passing move and secure Chiefs a bonus point, before Sam Simmonds broke tackles to go in from 20m for his second try and Exeter's third in the space of eight minutes either side of the break.

With the game won, Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter rang the changes. But the Chiefs were not done as replacement Joe Simmonds twisted his way over with minutes left.

However, it was Worcester who completed the scoring when Clegg forced his way over following a 5m line out.

Exeter Chiefs head coach Ali Hepher told BBC Radio Devon:

"We pushed hard in the early stages and maybe had a few opportunities that we didn't take. But as we grew into the game we became a little more clinical and scored a few tries.

"We got ourselves back on par a little bit with the away win last week and it was important we backed that up today with the win.

"Now we've got to get ourselves in credit with an away win, we'll go hunting that next week and hopefully we can get it.

On Sam Simmonds: "We're pleased to let him loose on the field. You can see his pace, he creates so many opportunities for us and also for himself - he's one of the best finishers out there."

Worcester Warriors' try-scorer Justin Clegg told BBC Hereford & Worcester:

"When you're trying as hard as we are, I think that's going to happen. When we're playing balls flat to the line and things like that and we're really desperate to get over, mistakes are bound to happen.

"But it's about how we react to that and I think we've just got to keep going and going."

Exeter: Hogg; Cordero, Slade (capt), Hendrickson, O'Flaherty, H Skinner, Maunder; Hepburn, Cowan-Dickie, Williams, Witty, Hill, Ewers, Capstick, S Simmonds.

Replacements: Innard, Keast, Iosefa-Scott, S Skinner, Tshiunza, Hidalgo-Clyne, J Simmonds, Whitten.

Worcester: Shillcock; Heward, Morris, Lawrence, Van der Merwe; Searle, Heinz (co-capt); Sutherland, Baldwin (co-capt), Judge, A Kitchener, Clegg, Hatherell, Kvesic, Vailanu.

Replacements: Annett, Waller, Tyack, Batley, Lewis, Chudley, Butler, Doel.

Referee: Tom Foley (RFU).

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